Liverpool Echo preview of Lord of the Dance Settee

Richard Herring is the Lord of the Dance SetteeOct 14, 2014 10:40
By Catherine JonesComedian brings a show of ‘daftness, being uncool and bouncing joyously on a sofa’ to the Epstein Theatre on November 1
IT may be a solo tour, but comedian Richard Herring is happy to share his stage each night – as long as his co-star behaves.
And the 47-year-old has already had a few mishaps performing alongside a succession of ‘guest artist’ sofas in his new Lord of the Dance Settee show, premiered at this summer’s Edinburgh and which arrives in Liverpool in a couple of weeks.
A settee on casters proved challenging in Belfast the other day for example. Then there was a mishap during one of his preview shows.
“There are quite a few physical bits in it and a lot of dancing around on stage,” Richard explains. “I over-exuberantly tried to jump over the arm, and missed and then cracked my shin against it. The performance carries through, and when I looked at it there was a massive gash on my shin!
“I’m surprised I’ve got through so far without serious injury, but I’m just relying on whatever sofa the theatres will give me.”
Since there are some big leather settees at the Epstein he should survive his latest visit to Liverpool unscathed – a change for a man who once made a whole stand-up routine out of getting into a fight during a previous appearance in the city.
Following hot on the heels of his last show We’re All Going to Die!, Lord of the Dance Settee has, he says, “a little melancholy underneath, but overall it’s quite a positive and fun show.
“It’s about moving on with your life and getting to middle age and working out if you’re a success or a failure, or you’ve done the things you want to do and what’s coming up next in your life.
“Which I suppose is the position I’m in with my career.”
Plus there’s plenty of ‘daftness, being uncool and bouncing joyously on a sofa’.
Over the past decade Richard has run his stand-up career alongside being a prolific comedy blogger and podcaster.
“I’d like to get to a point where an audience would give me a tiny amount of money so I could start making my own sitcoms or bigger ideas,” he says.
“I get tens of thousands of people listening to each podcast. So if they all gave me £1 a year I could have a nice little business making online comedy which is all I’d want to do with the money.”
Richard Herring brings his Lord of the Dance Settee show to the Epstein theatre on November 1 at 8pm. Tickets are £15 on 0844 888 4411.